Indonesian police split from military

April 1, 1999
Web posted at: 4:46 a.m. EST (0946 GMT)

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- In a move many hope will make Indonesia less repressive in dealing with the civil unrest sweeping the country, Indonesia's police force on Thursday split from the military after 30 years.

More than 400 people have died in communal violence this
year and police and armed forces have been criticized for
failing to stem the bloodshed and for often inflaming unrest by
shooting civilians.

The process of making the two agencies independent of each other could take two years, according to armed forces (ABRI) commander and Defense Minister General Wiranto.

The police force numbers about 200,000, roughly one for
every 1,000 people. The combined military numbers about 288,000,
including the 223,000-strong army.

"This is a gradual process towards an independent police
force and it is part of the internal reforms carried out within
ABRI in line with reforms taking place in the nation," he said.

Many hope the police will now be free to adopt a less
military, more professional style that will help quell the
bloodshed sweeping the country.

Wiranto told reporters police funding would come from ABRI's
budget for the fiscal year that began on Thursday. But he said
it was possible to ask for more money.

"That will very much depend on the ability of the country
to come up with those funds," he said.

Asked if the police could be shifted from his command and
placed under the president or the home affairs ministry, Wiranto
said: "That is a very great possibility, but it will depend on
a decision from the People's Consultative Assembly."

Critics call move window dressing

Critics of the independence move say it is window-dressing
to appease pro-democracy groups and please foreign aid donors.

They note the police will still answer to Wiranto, while a
truly independent force should report to the president.

"They will not let go of the police because that will
reduce their power. The police are like a bonsai plant -- it
lives but it cannot grow," said General Kunarto, police chief
from 1991-1993.

But the secretary general of the official human rights
commission, Clementino Dos Reis Amaral, said police could now
set their own policies and methods.

"The police are not as bad as they have been perceived by society," he said. "They will become more professional when
they are independent."

The police force was placed under the control of the
military in 1966 amid the worst wave of bloodshed to hit
Indonesia since independence. It was a period when the army ran
Indonesia.

As part of the reforms, the military's presence in
parliament has been slashed.

The once all-powerful ABRI has seen its powers wound back in
recent months in the face of mounting public demands for
increased democracy in the world's fourth most populace nation.